BIRTHDAY PRESENT

By Arnold Marmor

Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane. It was a nice arrangement—much too nice to last!

[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Imagination Stories of Science and Fantasy July 1954 Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]

"It's tonight or never," Diane said.

"Yes," I said.

I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor. She had on a sheer plasto dress that clung to her round white breasts and full milky thighs. "I'm picking him up at the spaceway," she said. "We're supposed to go dining and dancing tonight." She stopped pacing. "It's my birthday. I'm thirty today."

And I was twenty-four and in love. Six years between us. So what? I didn't give a damn. I wanted to marry her, to live with her.

"I'm thirty," she said again. "Do you mind?"

"I know your age. Why bring it up?"

"Someday you'll find out you married an old woman. If we ever do marry."

"Stop it." I got off the bed, went to her. "Just tell me what to do and I'll do it."

"Do you love me?" she looked up at me.

"You know I do."

"Say it."

"I love you."

"Never stop saying that." She put up her face and I kissed her. A long hard kiss. She broke away. "You'll be in back in the racer. Just crouch low. As soon as we're away from the spaceway you hit him with the wrench. It has to be quick and sure. Then we carry him up to the apartment and drop him out the window."

I shuddered a little as she talked. She was so calm about the whole thing.

"You'll have plenty of time to get out. It'll be listed as a suicide. He's been sick for a long 

  P 1/4 next